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Red Cross Responds to Cholera Outbreak in Angola
Written by
Katie Lawson
, Staff Writer, Redcross.org
Thursday, July 06, 2006 — According to the World Health Organization (WHO), cholera claims the lives of 150,000 people in developing countries each year. Although the disease has been virtually eliminated in the United States, in other parts of the world cholera is still all too common and deadly.
In mid-February 2006, an outbreak of cholera was reported in the African country of Angola. By June, the outbreak had grown to nearly 44,000 cases with more than 1,600 deaths. In just four short months, 14 of Angola’s 18 provinces were affected by the disease. Half of these reported cases occurred in the overcrowded living conditions of the country’s capitol, Luanda, where there is an inadequate supply of clean water and poor sanitation.
Cholera is an acute intestinal infection that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. Usually spread by drinking contaminated water or eating contaminated food, cholera’s symptoms include vomiting, leg cramps and diarrhea that can lead to severe dehydration and even death. The disease usually can be treated by aggressive rehydration. In most cases, it can be treated with an oral rehydration solution but severe cases may also require intravenous replacement of fluids.
In Luanda’s Boa Vista neighborhood, where the first cases were reported, homes are built on or among trash piles and are made of mud. Many residents were displaced here after Angola’s nearly 30 year civil war ended in 2002. The conflict caused much damage to the country’s health systems, making it difficult to provide those infected with quick and much-needed assistance.
The American Red Cross closely monitored the cholera outbreak in Angola and sent a technical expert, Jeanne Koepsell, to the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies in Geneva, Switzerland. There, she joined the Field Assessment and Coordination Team (FACT) being sent to support the team already in Angola. This team was responsible for providing updated information on the situation and response in order to assist the Angola Red Cross in its response to this epidemic.
The Angola Red Cross, also known as the Cruz Vermelha Angolana (CVA), has been responding since the outbreak began in February. CVA is collaborating with the Ministry of Health to develop a cholera awareness program to specifically help and protect those particularly vulnerable to the disease.
Social mobilization efforts are necessary to educate the public about cholera and help stop it from spreading. These efforts, carried out by CVA volunteers, include chlorinating household drinking water and providing oral rehydration salts. Volunteers also travel door-to-door to offer valuable cholera prevention information such as how to treat or avoid contaminated water sources and waste material. With generous donations of supplies and funding from WHO, UNICEF and International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement partners, these social mobilization efforts have successfully reached more than 850,000 people.
Efforts also have begun to increase the ability of health staff in all provinces in Angola to effectively treat current cases of cholera and prevent this disease from killing more people in the future.
You can help those affected by countless crises around the world each year by making a financial gift to the American Red Cross International Response Fund, which will provide immediate relief and long-term support through supplies, technical assistance and other support to help those in need. Please call 1-800-RED CROSS or 1-800-257-7575 (Spanish). Contributions to the International Response Fund may be sent to your local American Red Cross chapter or to the American Red Cross International Response Fund, P.O. Box 37243, Washington, DC 20013. Internet users can make a secure online contribution by visiting www.redcross.org. The American Red Cross honors donor intent. If you wish to designate your donation to a specific disaster please do so at the time of your donation.
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